The present invention concerns a device conceived to render pigs unconscious in an automatic manner and including a chamber holding one pig at a time.
When pigs are slaughtered they must be rendered uncounscious in some way before they are killed. Various methods are possible for this purpose. Gas or electricity is generally used. The use of gas is not completely without risks to the persons administering it and in addition, the pigs are frightened when they enter the room where they are made unconscious. This has a negative effect on the quality of the meat. Electric anaesthetics are generally administered by means of a pair of tongs each jaw of which is equipped with a live electrode. The tongs are applied manually across the head of the pig, whereby current flows between the electrodes and through the head of the pig, rendering the pig unconscious. This method works well, provided the pair of tongs is applied in a correct manner and the time during which the current is allowed to flow between the electrodes is correctly chosen. However, in practice the tongs are often applied carelessly, in a position askew and obliquely on the pig's head, and under unlucky circumstances the electrodes may be positioned on the ears of the pig, in which case the ears to some extent act as insulators with the result that the pig will not become unconscious at all or not sufficiently so. In addition, the accurate duration of the activation of the electric current is not always observed and often the pig is not made satisfactorily unconscious for this reason.